1. Field
One or more exemplary embodiments relate to a 3D printer having a dual stage structure, and more particularly, to a 3D printer having a dual stage structure including an extrusion unit and a cutting unit that are disposed above a stacking base unit with a variable distance between the extrusion unit and the cutting unit and a variable distance between the cutting unit and the stacking base unit so that a cutting or grinding operation may be simultaneously performed with a layering operation.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, 3D printers have been used in various fields and are highly considered for many applications. In the past one or two years, 3D printers have become very popular in Korea and available for purchase at shops such as Internet shopping malls. In other countries, 3D printers are even referred to as the new industrial revolution printers due to the ripple effect thereof and much attention has been given thereto.
Although the technology for 3D printers has been rapidly developed, it is still difficult to precisely form objects into desired shapes by using such 3D printers. Also, the speed of these 3D printers relatively low. Since 3D printers create objects in a layer-by-layer manner by using a raw material, stair-shaped portions are usually formed between layers of the objects, and thus, additional cutting or grinding processes may be necessary to remove the stair-shaped portions.
Therefore, after the objects are formed in a layer-by-layer manner by using a raw material, a cutting process is generally performed as a separate process. In this case, additional time and costs are incurred. Therefore, 3D printer capable of creating an object in a layer-by-layer manner and simultaneously performing a cutting process on the object is needed.